Entitlement Whore powers, activate!

[Ledomar]

So, I've been working lately for a company that is an outsource call center for a VERY large cell phone company in America. It's been a great experience so far (despite the SC's, mostly due to the fact I do get to say NO sometimes if a request is not achievable and I don't have to deal with people face to face). But of course some people stand out.

SC = Entitlement Whore
Me = Oh, you didn't know? Yo' ass betta call somebody!!!!!!
italics = my thoughts

SC - Yeah so as you can see from the notes on the account I've been having problems with my phone for a while.
Me - Yes, I do see that we have been attempting to get you a working phone for some time.
Too bad you keep declining the replacements we keep offering
SC - I think you guys should send me a new phone.
Me - Well sir, we can definitely send you a replacement phone due to you still being under warranty.
SC - No, I don't want a replacement. I want a BRAND. NEW. PHONE. and I want it for free.
And I want a million dollars and a 20 room mansion. Tough luck for both of us.
Me - Well sir, I could definitely see getting you a brand new phone if multiple replacement devices had not worked out. But, unfortunately, due to you declining all of our offers of a replacement device, we cannot do so.
SC - That's because I feel that since I bought this phone new, I should get a new phone.
Me - Well, let me attempt to see what I can do.
Work with me, dumbass. Gotta at least try to get a working phone before getting sent a brand new as a replacement.
*place customer on hold, and talk to my supervisor about it. She ain't having it especially due to him declining our offers to replace the device, even offering a better phone as a replacement*

Me - Sir, due to declining all of our offers to replace your phone, we cannot just jump to getting you a brand new phone as a replacement.
SC - That's bullsh*t. I give you several hundred dollars a month. And have for twelve years!
And by looking at your account, it's only been active for 4 years.
Me - Sir, I understand your frustration, but please refrain from cursing. mostly because I can't cuss back, dickwad
SC - Fuck you, I'll cuss if I want. You guys are crooks!
Me - Sir, if you can't refrain from cursing, I cannot help you.
SC - FUCK YOU! *click*

I understand both sides of he argument. Yes, getting a brand new phone that quits working sucks. And had it stopped working in the first 14 days of us sending it to you, you would get a brand new device. But calling in a month after getting the device, you will get a replacement that has been testing to make sure it works as well as we can make sure.
But if you refuse the help we can offer, we can't help you. Sure can't give you a free phone if we haven't exhaust all available resources.

[EricKei]

I gotta agree with you 100%, I might have had some sympathy for them at first, but the second I saw "declining the replacements", that all went out of the window.

It's always frustrating that you can't curse back -- but then again, sometimes it makes shutting them down that much more effective when you prove that you don't NEED to curse to react appropriately. I'm glad they let you hang up on them, too...

Well played!

[sylvier]

Refurbished phones generally work very well, because they've been checked thoroughly during repair work. And of course there would still be a warranty. Now, if someone could come up with magic words to make "previously owned phones are better than new ones" for the customers ...

[Rainman]

Seems like this guy is one of those folks who puts ALOT of his own self respect into what fancy new phone he has. It HAS to be new, because he would somehow be uncool and a total loser to have "a USED phone!" which these kinds of people see refurbs as.

[Antares]

Having worked in computer repair before for Forbidden Fruit Computers I quite understand not wanting a refurbished unit. I saw too many refurb units that were junk. I would never buy a refurbished piece of equipment.

My phone broke two weeks ago while on vacation. It is a refurb and I'll be going to the local repair center tomorrow because it is faulty, dropping calls at a rate I didn't experience before as well as locking up randomly.

I too would prefer a new phone, but realize that isn't going to happen.

[Mr Hero]

Seems like this guy is one of those folks who puts ALOT of his own self respect into what fancy new phone he has. It HAS to be new, because he would somehow be uncool and a total loser to have "a USED phone!" which these kinds of people see refurbs as.

And it's not like the people he's trying to impress can tell by looking at the phone that he bought it new or used.

[dragon_wings]

I love my phone and it works as well as a iPhone 3GS will work (network is slooow cause it's several generations behind). And yes, it was refurbished. I bought a refurb cause it was cheaper. And I got my roomie a refurbed 3GS as well. We will be saving up for the 5's when they come out but my phone has served me well the last 16 months.
If I had had issues with my phone I'd have gladly taken another refurbished iPhone. I'm just glad I haven't had any serious problems.

[Mystic]

I've been in SC's position before so I'm pretty understanding as to where he's coming from.

Thing is, if the phone isn't that old and is defective, I believe it should be replaced with a new product, not because a referb is defective, but because he paid for a new product, so that is what he should get as a replacement.

When I was in his shoes, I was fuming beyond belief. The phone I bought was a gift for my parents. If I had wanted a referb model, I would have saved the money and bought a referb rather than new. But the fact that I was willing to shell my hard earned cash out for a new product only to be defective and given a product that wasn't new in return really got under my skin.

That's just my .02 on the situation.
For me, it was more about the money I lost than anything.

[BlaqueKatt]

Thing is, if the phone isn't that old and is defective, I believe it should be replaced with a new product, not because a referb is defective, but because he paid for a new product, so that is what he should get as a replacement.

going with that line of thinking: he paid for a new product and GOT a new product, which is now used, for at least a month(most companies will exchange a defective phone for a new one within 30 days), why should the company replace a used product with a new one? Just because it was bought new?

Heck if that's the case, my husband's car was bought new, when he got t-boned after owning it for 4 months they should've given him a brand new car instead of "refurbishing" the old one-right? After all he paid for a new car, he should get a new car.

[CrazedClerkthe2nd]

So, I've been working lately for a company that is an outsource call center for a VERY large cell phone company in America. It's been a great experience so far (despite the SC's, mostly due to the fact I do get to say NO sometimes if a request is not achievable and I don't have to deal with people face to face). But of course some people stand out.

SC = Entitlement Whore
Me = Oh, you didn't know? Yo' ass betta call somebody!!!!!!
italics = my thoughts

Welcome to the Dogg house!

Wrestling nostalgia aside, I've done the same job you're doing and had a lot of calls that are pretty much word for word exactly the same. Our general rule was that we couldn't hang up on customers BUT we also didn't have to take abuse. We gave the customer THREE chances to stop cussing and if they didn't we could end the call (Though we had to be clear WHY we were doing it so we didn't risk getting nailed by internal audit).

I understand the customers frustration. Typical policy is to replace a phone with a refurbished device instead of a new one. Unfortunately my experience across a variety of electronics (computers, phones, game consoles) has taught me that the quality of refurbished products varies widely and sometimes they aren't "refurbished" very well.

Having said that, I agree with what you did because the guy kept declining phones. It's one thing to have a few defect replacements and then demand a new device. It's another to not even try.

And don't even get me started on the people who think EVERY PHONE IN EXISTENCE should be FREE.

[raudf]

I tend towards refurbs in most electronics, provided it comes with the same warranty as new. And with cell phones, I sometimes get new or sometimes get refurbs, depending which phone I want and which costs less. Sometimes, the new one is free where the refurb is $29 or $49.

After working in a repair center, I knew I wouldn't be getting a new phone to replace the malfunctioning one.. no more than if I'd taken my TV in would I be getting a new one. The only difference is that with cell phones, most people freak out if they have to wait two weeks for repairs. So, to keep business and reduce wait time, they send out a refurb to take the other phone's place.

New ones only occur if the refurbs fail too, something about design flaws in the phones. Lemon laws and all that. (With the repair center, if you were under service contract and the product failed three times, then we could replace it with a new one. Damn Sharp 5 disc top deck CD stereos!)

[Ledomar]

I do want to distinguish one thing, the sucktomer hung up on me at the end. We cannot disconnect a call unless the customer is being extremely inappropriate, and even then a supe has to take the call and release it.

As far as getting a new phone vs. refurb, the policy is within first 30 days (not the 14 day to get a different style of phone) you would get a brand new one. After the first 30, you get a replacement. If multiple replacements don't resolve the problem, we will explore other options to satisfy the customer.

But we can't work with you, if you refuse to work with us.

[MoonCat]

I realize electronic devices are complex and expensive, but if it were me, I'd want a new one too...precisely because they are complex and expensive, I paid for a new product, and I didn't get what I paid for.

Still, you offered the guy what you were authorized to offer him. He could have taken the replacement and if it still didn't work, then you can talk about a new one. And there's no excuse for swearing at you.

[Jester]

SC - No, I don't want a replacement. I want a BRAND. NEW. PHONE. and I want it for free.
And I want a million dollars and a 20 room mansion. Tough luck for both of us.

I want a date with Anna Paquin.
I want to drink at a pool with Megan Fox in a bikini. (Her in the bikini, not me.)
I want Kirsten Dunst to do things to me that I would never admit to my mother.
After all the Top Gear I've been watching, I want a Bugatti Veyron.
I also want unlimited Weihenstephaner Korbinians, free Phoenix Suns courtside tickets, a national football championship for Arizona State, a Stanley Cup for the Coyotes, several bottles of Pyrat Cask 1623, Irish redheads fawning over me, and Lance Armstrong's advice to make me a better cyclist.

Guess what? We've all gotta get used to some disappointment in our lives.

Now, if someone could come up with magic words to make "previously owned phones are better than new ones" for the customers ...

How about "battle tested"?

Heck if that's the case, my husband's car was bought new, when he got t-boned after owning it for 4 months they should've given him a brand new car instead of "refurbishing" the old one-right? After all he paid for a new car, he should get a new car.

To be fair, that's not the same thing. You are comparing a defective product to one that someone else fucked up. To keep with your car analogy, it's like saying getting T-boned is the same as that car, when new, having a leaking radiator.

[Mystic]

going with that line of thinking: he paid for a new product and GOT a new product, which is now used, for at least a month(most companies will exchange a defective phone for a new one within 30 days), why should the company replace a used product with a new one? Just because it was bought new?

Heck if that's the case, my husband's car was bought new, when he got t-boned after owning it for 4 months they should've given him a brand new car instead of "refurbishing" the old one-right? After all he paid for a new car, he should get a new car.

There is a difference between crashing a car and buying a defective product.